Virgin nerite

Vitta virginea

Also known as Olive nerite, Virgin nerite snail

FreshwaterBrackishSnail

Virgin nerite (Vitta virginea) — Cristina Hutchison · cc0

Care at a glance

Temperature: 72–79°F (22–26°C)
pH: 7.5–8.5
Adult size: 0.8 in (2 cm)
Minimum tank: 5 gal (20 L)
Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Solitary
Swim level: Bottom
Difficulty: Easy
Breeding: Hard
Rarity: Common
Origin: Western Atlantic and Caribbean estuaries
Family: Neritidae

Overview

Keep them on their own and stock by how much algae the tank grows rather than as a group, since they are solitary grazers and will starve a clean tank. They are peaceful bottom dwellers that work over glass, rock, and substrate all day. Give them hard alkaline water from pH 7.5 to 8.5 and a temperature of 22 to 26 C in a tank of 20 liters or more. If the algae runs out, drop in algae wafers or blanched vegetables like zucchini or spinach. Use a lid, because they climb the glass and will crawl out of an open tank.

In the wild

Virgin nerites come from estuaries along the Western Atlantic and Caribbean coasts, where they graze algae off rock, glass, and substrate in hard, mineral-rich water. To match that, keep them in a tank of at least 20 liters with hard, alkaline water and a pH from 7.5 to 8.5, since the calcium keeps their shell solid. Run the temperature between 22 and 26 C. In soft, acidic water the shell pits and erodes, so check your hardness before adding them.

Good to know

This is a small snail in the family Neritidae, staying around 2 cm as an adult. Breeding is hard in the home tank because the larvae need brackish water to develop, so it will not breed in fresh water and cannot overpopulate. Most stock in the trade is wild collected. With good water it lives a couple of years.

Did you know

This snail cannot breed in a freshwater tank no matter how settled it is. The females will lay small white egg capsules on hard surfaces, but the larvae need brackish water to hatch and grow, so the eggs simply sit there and never produce young.